When the federation celebrated Heritage and History week in February of this year, Sir Probyn Inniss, former Governor of St. Kitts, Nevis and Anguilla, Writer, Social Commentator, Lay Preacher, Community Activist and notable Historian remarked, “We have to appreciate the damage which History has done to our fore parents and their descendants.

Can anyone doubt that the legacies of slavery and colonialism are still very strong even in the 21st century? The legacies of divisiveness, dependency and dehumanization still persist.”

Earlier this year, during an on air conversation with “Voices” host Mr. Ian “Patches” Liburd, Sir Probyn again spoke at length to the deviant and divisive behavior that has become the norm in our society which, to his mind, can be crushed if the people stand up for country as opposed to party.

History will record that Nevisians stood up to become the modern day template for the federation, and the Caribbean for that matter, as to what should NOT happen during any election.

It is well known that in the July 2011 Nevis elections in St. John’s Electoral District, candidate for the NRP Mr. Hensley Daniel, claimed victory over CCM’s Mark Brantley following a 14 vote loss that Mr. Brantley did not accept. Instead, Brantley sought the intervention of the High Court, citing numerous electoral irregularities, including the improper removal of some 200 names from the voters list.

The High Court ruled in Mr. Brantley’s favour declaring that the election of Deputy Premier Hensley Daniel was in fact null and void and on August 27th, the Eastern Caribbean Appeal Court upheld the High Court’s ruling that was appealed by Mr. Daniel.

Trial Judge Lionel Jones SC used strong language to condemn the conduct of Supervisor of Elections Mr. Leroy Benjamin and Registration Officer Ms. Bernadette Lawrence. According to the Appeal Court, “There was abundant evidence, which established not only bias, but worse, bad faith and misfeasance on the part of Ms. Lawrence,” The court also found “evidence of reckless indifference as to whether he was breaking the law or causing injury,” with regard to the Supervisor of Elections.

“This was enough,” the court found, for the judge to have found bias and bad faith and misfeasance in public office on the part of Mr. Benjamin and it was similarly a finding required by the evidence to be made.” Within a week, the man of the cloth who once proclaimed to be chosen by God to be the Supervisor of Elections chose to resign from his post. By September 12, Bernadette Lawrence followed suit and tendered her resignation as Registration Officer.

It seems the lack of honesty and a willingness to secure “power” for their colleagues emboldened the Supervisor of Elections and his Registration Officer to commit dastardly deeds, acting totally against the grain of their duties to the electoral system and to the people.

Many will vilify the Supervisor of Elections and The Registration Officer, however those who knew about and encouraged their misdeeds are just as culpable as these public servants.

Whether or not the Supervisor of Elections and the Registration Officer felt they broke any rules is up for debate; none of us know for sure what their thoughts were, but according to the Eastern Caribbean Appeal Court and the High Court, both the Supervisor of Elections and the Registration Officer broke the rules of the electoral system and in the process, breached the rights of citizens and shamelessly compromised their integrity; public servants entrusted to uphold the law of the land turned into mere puppets.

So here goes the nation again, thrust into election mode to incur costs, cussing and chaos because the powers that be in Basseterre and Charlestown treated the electoral system like their personal property. What a damning price to pay for political expediency!

Sir Probyn's assessment of our federation 29 years after we severed ties with Mother England really ought to resonate with our politicians. In addition to fighting to make life better for the ordinary man, how committed are they to unifying our communities, empowering and uplifting our people and transforming the overall economic and socio-political climate in which our people now live?

When we assess the political landscape of our nation which requires men and women of honour to command the reins of power, perhaps it’s time to champion the cause for a new breed of youthful and vibrant aspirants to defy party politics and stand on principles that engender transparency and integrity in and out of public life. This may elicit a willing crop of politicians, eager to work together, particularly across party lines, to achieve greater things for our blossoming twin island federation.

If all we have become is a nation that boasts of its 29 years of independence whose people have a 98 percent literacy rate yet remain so polarized that election cycle after election cycle "political expediency" trumps integrity, one can conclude that we are still bound by the colonial cords our forefathers so steadfastly fought to be liberated from.

Among many things, the August 27th, 2012 appeal court decision in Nevis proves that our islands aren’t the federation of powerful politicians. Rather, it is the federation of St. Kitts and Nevis, where the people, by the power of their vote, choose their leaders when called upon to do so, and therefore matter more.

The true power brokers are the PEOPLE!

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